i have a large heapin helpin of this, thanks to shawnp, it's been sitting for probably a year or more.

i always remember this as being very similar to McCranies Red Ribbon, only a little smokier.

started off not so hot cuz i had to re=light it every time i wanted to puff. after a few good tamp 'n twists (mostly twists to break up the tobacco and smooth it out), it seems to finally be smoking, but needing frequent puffs.

this pipe, Ser Jacapo Maxima Ball, normally smokes things from first couple lights all the way down...
it may be due to using a "pipe nail" instead of my trusty "mr.c brass tamper".

flavors-wise, this started off just like McCranies Red Ribbon, which is kinda blah to me. it's got that standard McCelland vinegar-ry taste, with hints of sweetness in the background. there are times when i crave such a taste, but normally i do not.
it has evolved, once it finally got going, into more of a smoky-tangy type of flavor with a sweetness hidden in the back. probably hidden cuz i have t over-puff to keep it going. the tobacco is plenty dry to smoke on its own without relights like this.
this pipe is normally a VaPer pipe for me, but my normal straight VA pipe is at work, so i'm making due with the next best LARGE bowled pipe.

now that the fire is going, a little helping light now and then keeps it going (if i sat and focused, probably wouldn't need it).

unseasonably cool weather here in KC. it's high 70s and a slight breeze, with low humidity. if it were like this all summer, i wouldn't be thinking of moving. it's about 20* cooler than normal and i'm sure the humidity is about 40% lower... the breeze is nice, too. very odd for mid-August in KC. i don't even hear the cicadas or have a ton of bugs all over me (just a few). hell, i could smoke outside in weather like this all damn day.

back to the tobacco. solid flavors, little vinegar-ish, tangy w/ a nose tingle on the exhale. not what i think of as a 'typical Va', more of a typical McCelland Va.

if you like red VAs and McClellands VA flavors but not their "broken flakes/chips of solid wood", then this may be up your alley.

i'd give it an: eh, i have to be in the mood for just this type of tobacco.

i've been smoking this fairly often lately. i put some in a small container to take to local herfs with me, and it's handy to pack and go with.

flavors were never very rough, but it's continued to smooth out over the years (i think i've had this sample a good 2+ years now - said it was a large sample).
i'm actually trying to "smoke the ghost out" of an old Latakia pipe. i've tried to clean that beast many times, and it just won't come out.... read some old timers would just smoke it out. this is what i'm using on it.

so, about 3/4 of the pipe tastes like it should, only the last portion gets any ghosting now, which is good, as i hate Latakia now.

this blends still seems to want to fight the flame... i'm quite sick of McClellands products, actually. they just don't want to burn, even if dry as can be, they don't want to stay lit, even in the best of smoking pipes.
it's improved in this category enough to not piss me off anymore, but i shouldn't have to re-light it as often as i do when i smoke it.